Blank Check with Griffin & David - Cloud Atlas with Bobby Finger

Episode Date: May 20, 2016

Bobby Finger (Jezebel) joins Griffin and David to discuss 2012’s Cloud Atlas. Why is one of the most expensive independent films of all time considered to be such a critical failure? Do we like the future talk? How long is this movie tho? Together they discuss the choice to have actors play multiple roles, Jim Broadbent’s childhood flashbacks and Mr. Holland's Opus.

Blank Check with Griffin and David Blank Check with Griffin and David Don't know what to say or to expect All you need to know is that the name of the show is Blank Check Our lives are not our own From womb to tomb we are bound to others Past and present. And by each crime and every kindness, we birth our podcast.

What word is even being replaced there? Future. That's the speech Sonmi gives. I was looking for a different one. I couldn't find it. The IMDb quote section for Cloud Atlas is... It's undervalued. Sparse for a movie that's three hours long.

And two hours and 52 minutes. Okay. Not the most quotable movie. I don't know. I was looking. There's the thing that Tom Hanks says to Halle Berry on the sort of when they're on the... On the mountain? On the volcano or whatever?

No, no, no. In the Louisa Roy mystery. Oh, okay. Oh, okay. When he's like, we haven't met before, no, no. In the Louisa Roy mystery. Oh, okay. When he's like, we haven't met before, but yet, I feel like, I don't know. Anyway, hi, my name is Griffin Newman. I'm David Sims. This is Blank Check with Griffin and David.

Correct. This is the Podchowski casters. Good. How can it be two things? Because... Because that's how this podcast works, guys. Like American Horror Story. There is an overarching franchise. And then there are separate mini-series.

It's kind of like Nesting Dolls. Kind of like the novel Cloud Atlas. But not the film Cloud Atlas. No. Because we want to be able to compete in the mini-series category at the podcast awards. Right. You know? Not against like dramatic podcasting.

What? Oh. Did you just try to say dramatic and say dramatic? Yeah, I don't know. Fuck me. I'm really tired. Guys, it's a Saturday afternoon. I ate Chick-fil-A for breakfast.

Yeah. I'm drinking a vitamin water and we are here. You said it like a British person. I thought it was funny. Yeah, sure. Yeah, I don't know. It's fine. We're here to talk about the fifth, sixth movie.

The sixth Wachowski's movie? The sixth Wachowski joint. It's a motion picture called Cloud Atlas. Yes, it's a film they co-directed. With Tomt Viker. He of Run, Lola, Run. And a hologram for the king fame. You just saw that.

We were just talking about that yesterday. I haven't seen it. Have you seen that? No. I read the book. I like the book. Give it a gentleman's B minus. He made, what did he make?

He made Perfume, the story of a murderer, which I think is where he got Wischoff from for this movie. The International, is that what it was called? The one with Naomi Watts and Clive Owen? Oh, yeah, where it's like Banks. That was his big American film. Guggenheim. Yeah, there's a Guggenheim chase.

That was the poster, was them in the Guggenheim. Yeah, that one kind of came and went. Yeah. After Ronald O'Rannell, his stuff kind of came and went. You know, we're here to talk about Cloud Atlas. And we have a guest. I'm really getting sidetracked. A guest of all guests.

He's a great man. A friend. We have. I'm really getting sidetracked. A guest of all guests. Yes. He's a great man. A friend. We met on Twitter. And then we decided to go meet up at a bar and we talked for like eight hours about movies. Like four hours. It may have been actually four hours. Which bar?

It was my. It was like under an overpack. It was a very strange bar. It's a bar I love that they've ruined a little bit. It used to be really gross, and now it's really gross, but trying to be cool. What bar? It's called Tobacco Road. It used to be called Port 41. It's technically within Port Authority, underneath the bridge.

But you can't get there through Port Authority. You have to enter through the side of the building. It's right around here. through Port Authority, you have to enter through the side of the building. It's right around here. Yeah, and there used to be a sign on the wall saying that there was no sleeping allowed at or under the tables, which gave you a sense of the tenor of the place. Right, right. That had to be clarified.

When was that? That was around the time Toy Story 3 came out, because I remember we spent a large chunk of that conversation talking about Toy Story 3. Yeah, it was probably 2010. 2010. So you guys have known each other for a while, not longer than I've known Griffin. We saw, yes, we saw the change-up together. We saw the change-up together. And we switched phones. I completely forgot we did that.

But you didn't switch bodies. Well, what we pretended. The bit was we went to see the change-up together and we switched phones so we live tweeted the change-up from each other's Twitter accounts. I completely forgot that we did that. So I was like Griffin stuck on Bobby Finger's Twitter account. And I just tweeted about tits the whole time.

I forgot about the change up too. Yeah, we saw the shit out of it. You forgot about the change up and then the change up. Wow. Oh my God. Have we said his name? No, he's Bobby Finger. He's the co-host of the Who Weekly podcast.

He is. And he writes for Jezebel. Yeah. And he's a great person. He's a great person. of the Who Weekly podcast. He is. And he writes for Jezebel. Yeah. And he's a great person. He's a great person. Who exists in the world. I will say that. I don't know if I say this to your face because I don't like to say things that make people uncomfortable.

You're one of the people I find funniest in the world. That's really nice. Truly. You make me laugh harder than most people who self-identify as exclusively comedians. Thank you. Can I share my favorite? It's a very random little memory. I think it might have been the first time I hung out with Bobby Finger, which is when you came to Trivia one time.

And the three of us were on my computer. I know what you're going to say. I still think about this and laugh. I think about it all the time. I forgot this too. What was this? You're dropping gems all the time. It's a very minor thing. We were going through the Academy Awards on Wikipedia and every year there was

you know, the Wikipedia entry has the poster, you know. And we were just looking at all the posters. The official poster for that year's ceremony. Yeah, right. And the, I forget which one, was it the 14 maybe Academy? The 2014 ones? The ones hosted by, the ones that were most recently hosted by Ellen DeGeneres.

Right. And it hadn't happened yet. And the poster hadn't been released yet. I don't know where this is going. I have no idea. Poster hadn't been released yet. And we clicked forward to that year's, to the upcoming. And instead of the poster, there was just a picture of Ellen DeGeneres smiling at the camera. This was like a month before the show.

And we all burst into hysterics just at this image. And then the poster turned out to just be Alan DeGeneres. This is not a funny story for anyone except the three of us. The moment, I mean, that was experiential. Her legs are kind of just like, she's sitting a little, like, short cross legs. Sitting Indian style.

She was sitting on the floor and she had like an elbow up on a knee. Criss-cross applesauce. Maybe there was an Oscar in front of her. Yeah, there was an Oscar on the floor and she had an elbow up on a knee. Criss-cross applesauce. Maybe there was an Oscar in front of her. Yeah, there was an Oscar on the ground. But when we were looking before the poster, it was just a straightforward profile picture of Ellen DeGeneres looking right at you. Yeah, and to contextualize this a little bit, the other posters for the Oscar ceremony don't have the host in them. No, they're art deco-y shots of an Oscar trophy or whatever.

In what way can we reuse this silhouette? Like, how can we use this silhouette in a different way? And this was like a placeholder because they'd announced her as the host, but they hadn't made a poster yet. So there was just a placeholder with some random picture of Ellen. And then the actual poster ended up just being, for the first time in history,

just some picture of Ellen. Portia de Rossi might say Ellen's a bigger prize anyway. So maybe we all would rather have an Ellen than an Oscar. You are such a romantic. You're such a poet. Speaking of poets, I mean, you know, this is a meeting of two great poetic minds today. Oh, that's right. Because, of course, we have with us our resident poet laureate.

There he is coughing in the background. Coughing in the background. He's getting over a strep throat. Yeah. Hey, guys. Yeah, Bobby, you were kind of sick last quote-unquote week, a.k.a. yesterday when we recorded Speed Racer. You called Ben Bobby.

Yeah, Ben. Maybe Bobby was sick, too. I understood. His name's not Bobby, okay? He goes by a couple names. Producer Ben, Produer Ben, the Ben-deucer. We've already talked about being the poet laureate.

Do you have any favorites? Ben-deucer is my favorite. Produer Ben, I said that right? Tiebreaker, Birthday Benny, Mr. Positive, the Haas,

the Falkmaster. He's not Professor Crispy. The Peeper. The Peeper, of course. Kylo Ben, Professor Ben-Kanobi, old Ben-Kanobi. Oh, whatever. Ben Knight Shyamalan., old Ben Kenobi. Oh, whatever.

Ben Night Shyamalan. Ben Night Shyamalan. There's a bunch of other ones. We got to go. It goes on and on. It goes on and on. All I'm asking, you know, because Ben is sick. All I'm asking is all our listeners out there, pray for Ben.

Pray up to God. They wish him a hello panel. Speedy recovery. How are you doing, Ben? You know, I'm feeling better today for sure. I was bummed I didn't get to participate in the Speed Racer talk, but I think it was a great episode, guys.

Now, do you want to share some quick thoughts on Speed Racer because you loved it? Do you want to have your little Ben Speed Racer corner? Yeah, sure. So I'll say I cried so hard at the end of the movie. It's an emotional ending. Really hit me hard at the end of the movie. It's an emotional ending. Really hit me hard. Yeah, love the film.

I would say in general what I'd like in movies moving forward is naming the character around what they do. I think that that's really solid. Just like fast hero. So like big people. So like Captain America could be called like Throwing Shield Man or whatever. Yeah, totally. Just name them what they do.

Okay, so with this established, I might at certain points within this episode, Ben, ask you to rename the characters of Cloud Atlas. I can absolutely do that. There's only a couple of characters in Cloud Atlas anyway. It's pretty contained film. Also, did they tape Christina Ricci's eyes wider open? That was the only other thought I had too I wanted to put out there.

She's very wide-eyed in the film. That's crazy. They don't even look real. Those are my thoughts on Speed Racer. Thank you, Ben. Ben is, if you don't know, he is the world's greatest film critic. I don't know if you knew that. I didn't know that, but I'm beginning to understand that. We've submitted our galleys to Double Day.

And make it big, the collected writings of Ben Hosley. It should be coming in Q1 2017. That book is going to be big, too. It's a coffee table book. It's a coffee table book. It's going to be very big. He means literally big. It will never be released in paperback.

Okay, so Cloud Artlers. Yes. Oh, the one thing I wanted to say, the Bobby moment that makes me laugh, and I once again don't know if this will translate. Yeah, Bobby. We've had so many great times. All these Bobby anecdotes. Yeah, but we were talking about, I don't remember how we got into this, but you interrupted

the conversation to say, man, I just can't. conversation to say like man i just can't i'm so excited for when the um the uh best marigold hotel uh two trailer drops i said that a lot around that whatever time you're very excited i was very excited we didn't know at the time it was going to be called the second best exotic marigold hotel that was your crusade that was my dream yeah but at the time you just said like can you just imagine the trailer? They show all the actors. They show us that Dickie Gear is on board. And then the title comes up and it says, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. And then very slowly, a two fades in.

And the way you were so sincere, the way you described the two fading in. I love them. But it was the specific of the two fading in. That it wasn't there from the get-go. That the title is the title you know and then the shock of a two. And we could all picture it, couldn't we? We could all picture it. We thought it was a lovely image, didn't we? We thought it was a lovely image.

It was very, it was successful theater of the mind. We all saw what you were seeing. Great. You, you are a listener of the show. And you're a pal of both of ours. And I want to have you on the show for a long time. Yes, and you wanted to be on this episode, Bobby. I did.

I was maybe it's because I mean I feel like I didn't realize that as many people liked Cloud Atlas as they do. So when I requested Cloud Atlas, I kind of expected there to be competition, and I expected Griffin to be competition, and I expected Griffin to say, like, someone already took it. Little did I know, no one even offered to take Cloud Atlas. Yeah.

And so I was very shocked, and then I realized, wait, did I pick the kind of loser of the bunch? But I still love it. I still love it. Absolutely not. I think we all love it. Yep. It was the first thing that came to mind whenever the Wachowskis were released. whenever the word Wachowskis were released.

This movie was released in 2012. Yeah, in October 2012. Late October. Oscar season. Yes. I believe it came out the exact weekend that Hurricane Sandy hit? Hurricane Irene?

It didn't? That might be. It came out the weekend of a big New York storm because I remember wanting to go see it on Saturday afternoon and having to wait.

Mm-hmm. And I just went into an apartment which I moved into that apartment the Friday before the storm hit. So I remember specifically

because the box office opening weekend was terrible and the movie store never recovered. But it was like the whole East Coast was like locked indoors for this storm.

The last thing on anyone's mind was Cloud Atlas. Yes. It was a $100 million independent film. $128.5 million budget. Nuts. Pretty nuts. Raised independently, mostly through German studios. Yeah.

And they'd done Speed Racer in Germany and Tom Fiker is German. So I guess, you know, they got their claws in there in that country. And, you know, there was a sort of like incredible six minute trailer for this movie. So cool. Set to Overture by M83

or one of the M83. Outro. Oh, it's outro. It's not the... And the beginning of the trailer is set to the music from the score. Right, right. And then it switches to your outro. Which outro

always is effective in anything. Yes. Absolutely. The MPAA has regulations that trailers can't be over three minutes long. Oh, really? And so they were just sort of like... It was online only. I never saw a trailer in a theater. No, no, no. And that trailer had... I mean, I think this is now harder to find, but that trailer had a video

introduction by Lana Wachowski, then Larry Wachowski, now Lily Wachowski, and Tom Twyker. And they were sort of like contextualizing the movie and presenting it to you because it was sort of like, you know, we can't release this longer one

in theaters, but we think the movie's so expansive, it's hard to contain in a three-minute trailer, so we want to give you a better sense of what it is. But they also went into, in that introduction, explaining how hard it was to get the money to make the movie. Like, they were sort of saying, like, we had it for years, and then this person dropped out, and then right before this, and Warner Bros. was only going to put up this much,

and then right before they decided they wanted to pull out. I didn't see that. It was interesting. I can't find the introduction anymore. But it was also one of the first times that Lana was speaking very publicly as Lana. And they also weren't ever speaking...

They were known for not speaking, period. Right. They don't really do publicity at all. Right. And she was sort of taking the reins and kind of hosting this intro. Because they optioned the book right after it came out, didn't they? Wachowski's optioned the book. Which was 04? It came out in 04 and then I think

Twiker, how do you say his name? I think it's Twiker. He like wanted, he like came to them and was like I want to make this, you know, I know you optioned it and they worked on it, like they collaborated for years on it together, the three of them. What I didn't understand, I was reading the Wikipedia for it earlier this morning.

There's a really long paragraph on that page about Tom Hanks being involved. And there's, they kind of, it seems like they left part of the narrative out of that paragraph.

Yeah. I know what you're talking about. Because he's talking about like, well, I want to do it or something. And then it's like, and then it happened. But it's like, it's not just because

Tom Hanks said yes. Like, where did this money come from? Yeah. It does seem weird. It seemed, you know, they raised money in like bits and pieces. They got like 20 million euros from the German government. They got blah, blah. You know, so I guess they were putting money together.

I think. Yeah. Maybe it was going to fall. Maybe like they weren't going to get all the way there. Yeah. And they said that to Tom Hanks. Like, and this is Wikipedia. So, you know.

Yeah. They said that to Tom Hanks and he was like, no, we're going to do it. We're going to do it. Yeah. Tom Hanks, like, and this is Wikipedia, so, you know. Yeah. They said that to Tom Hanks, and he was like, no, we're gonna do it. We're gonna do it. Yeah, I'm Tom Hanks.

The next sentence is, there's like a sentence that ends the paragraph, but then it's like, and then we were all in Berlin. Yes. Yeah, exactly.

Okay. I think it was one of those situations where like, they were 100% financed. Yes, so everyone flew to Berlin to begin the film. That is the,

yeah. I think it was like a situation, if I remember the intro correctly, they were like 100% financed and then like 40% dropped out but they had like 60% and they were already like setting it up so at that point you like have people being like

we're ready to make this movie like you're not gonna put your money and have it sitting there for a while we can make this in a month I think Hank's probably like you know pressed the flesh a lot and did whatever I think Warner make this in a month. I think Hank's probably like, you know, pressed the flesh a lot and did whatever. I think Warner Brothers put in a little bit. It might have been

under the guise of like, this is the, how much we're paying to be able to distribute it rather than like, you know, actually investing in the film. Did either of you know

about this production even happening? Because I didn't even know this was in the works until the trailer came out. That five minute long thing. I honestly can't remember when I found out about it.

Yeah, I mean, no. Did you? Go ahead. I remember reading an interview with Susan Sarandon a month or two before the trailer came out and her being like, yeah, I just finished this other film with the Wachowskis and we all played different races and genders. And I was like, what?

Quite a lead, really. Yeah, and I hadn't heard about the book or read the book because I'm an idiot I had read I read the book when it came out I liked David Mitchell I read Number 9 Dream

his previous book which was nominated I didn't read the book which was nominated for the Booker Prize congratulations David when I was in high school or whatever

and then I read this book I haven't read anything since he's written a lot of books old Mitchie but I like this book and that's the story of david reading cloud alice yeah in 2005 i read that interview and then was like i don't know what i mean it's because it wasn't a hollywood thing right that's maybe why it wasn't

so like deadline hyped you know every week i don't know and i don't know if you guys remember this but there was also this thing where like a bunch of people like important political figures in interviews were like yeah i shot this thing with the wachowskis and they wanted to make a movie that was like a sort of half documentary half drama but it was like a documentary from the future about the military it was like a lesbian military story and ariana huffington was in it and like a bunch of people like that i swear to god excuse me i now need to go down a google rabbit hole. But there was a photo that leaked out that was Ariana Huffington in front of a green screen with, in future clothes. In future clothes. I swear to God this is real.

With Lana and Lily Wachowski, then Larry. I think it was Andy is now. Yes, you're right. I'm sorry. I fucked it up. Yes, yes, yes. I fucked it up. You're right.

This is a real thing. Yeah. And they were shooting this weird movie and it was like they were paying out of pocket. This was years before Cloud Atlas, though. But my point is, that was a thing that was sort of talked about and it was like,

oh, they're shooting these pieces. This would be the wraparound. They're trying to get the money to do the narrative. Like, I guess it was going to be sort of like District 9 where it's like you have like fake documentary talking heads and then you sort of have the dramatic narrative. Okay. So they were like shooting the interview stuff.

We're trying to get the money to do the rest of it. And we're paying for that stuff out of pocket. So when I heard the Sarandon like, oh, we're all playing different like races and genders, I was like, maybe this is another thing like that. Yeah. Future wig. You left out the future wig. Just to really briefly, and then we really need to talk about this movie.

Jesse Ventura also shot Governor Jesse Ventura. Governor Jesse the Body Ventura. Correct. Said, they brought me and they brought Ariana Huffington in after me. Ariana was there and they had her looking like Cleopatra. Do you remember what John Travolta looked like in that horrible film Battlefield Earth? They put multicolored dreadlocks on me all the way to here. They gave me this crazy beard.

Looked like Travolta, right? And I put a third eye in the middle of my forehead. I'm reading this cold. And this is like from 10 years ago, right? I mean, when's the story from? 2007? It's from like 2009. Okay.

And because, you know, this is 100 years in the future, and they wanted me to talk about the war in Iraq and how I felt with it. So I got to vent, looking like a maniac. Right. If Jesse, the body of Ventura, thought he looked like a maniac, he really looked weird. And this movie, is this scrapped, or is it just on hold? I don't know. They never got the money for the rest of the thing.

Apparently, it was a small queer military drama, love story. So I think it was very hard to get financing. But when they talked about Cloud Atlas, I was like, this might be part of that. This might be some other project that they're shooting things for that's never going to get seen. But it wasn't.

No, when the trailer dropped, I was like, oh, this is an actual movie that they made and is going to be viewable? Yes. Film Cloud Atlas. Yes. Yeah. We're going to talk about it now.

Okay. So when did you guys see this movie? I just saw it. You just saw it for the first time? Yeah. Oh, I had never seen it. Oh, I had no idea. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Oh my God. I saw it maybe, I remember wanting to see it right as it came out, but I guess that's why I didn't. Storm, yeah. I saw it maybe the third or fourth week. I saw it at the Regal Union Square AMC, a Saturday matinee, I want to say. Oh, wow, good choice, Bobby.

And I wasn't really expecting to love it. I thought I would like it. Yeah. But I remember leaving and then exiting into the light and just being so satisfied. I was just so satisfied by this movie and very surprised because I wasn't familiar with the book. I was just so satisfied by this movie.

And very surprised because I wasn't familiar with the book. I mean, I knew it's a favorite book of a few friends of mine who have tried to tell me to read it, but I haven't read it. Right. But I wasn't expecting to be, like, overwhelmed by it. And, like, manipulated, but, like, in a very pleasurable way. I'm trying to remember why I didn't see this movie. And it might have been because of like Hurricane Sandy or something they might have been literally something that obvious that like I missed it

the first couple weeks and then it you know it disappeared. Like dudes like us who are like movie omnivores when you get into October and there's gonna be like a couple big movies coming out every week. Blah blah blah yeah I was like moving. We both moved That's so weird but it's something we're like. Oh it's so weird. Yeah it's something we're like. It's so weird.

But like that weekend you don't go see anything because of the storm. So then the following weekend you're backlogged. I mean the other problem is like I have no problem with a three hour movie. But when it's a three hour movie you can't just be like I'm going to like pop over to the IFC center and catch that. You plan your day around it. Yeah. Okay. Oh that's like you know.

And so for some reason I had never seen this movie. So I've told you this. I had one of the absolute worst movie-going experiences of my life seeing this movie. Okay. Yes. I think I've told you this. I told Ben this. Go ahead.

Where was it? I went to the AMC Lincoln Square. Perfectly fine. I believe it's a 13. Lincoln Square 13. It's a 13. It's the Lincoln Square 13. Yes.

68th and Broadway. But all the theaters are called like the Aztec it's got like 13 elevators too and my escalators all those escalators this is what I'm saying

funniest guy in the biz right here roasted yeah roasted yeah okay you got fingered just shitting on Lincoln Square

fingered I think it was the Egyptian I think we maybe sure sure it wasn't in the IMAX it was in the it was the Egyptian. I think we maybe saw it at the Egyptian. Sure, sure. It wasn't in the IMAX. It was in one of the regulars. Our friend Common.

I went to go see it with him. For a second, I thought you just said our friend Common, meaning the rapper. That's what I thought you said too. My Bulgarian friend, Common Volkovsky. Yes, former trivia. Yeah. His name is spelled K-A-M-E-N.

Anytime I reference him, people think I'm friends with the rapper Common. Yes, right. I just did. Hell on wheels, star, Common. Which is sort of people, I think I'm friends with the rapper Common. Yes, right. I just did. Hell on wheels star Common. Which is sort of like, you know, dress for the job you want. Be friends with the person you want to be friends with. If I'm friends with someone named Common,

maybe someday I'll be friends with Common. But you went to see it with Common. And we were sitting, sold out theater, right? Oh, wow. Were we talking opening week? Opening weekend? I'm guessing maybe it was that Monday or Tuesday, maybe Sunday after the storm. It was anyway.

It's surprising, right? Yeah. So we're sitting on the aisle, but there's one seat. Like we're not all the way on the aisle, right? We go in towards the middle. So there's one seat at the end of the aisle next to the two of us. And a woman, a kind looking woman comes up to me, taps me on the shoulder and says, uh, Hey, is this seat open?

And I went, yeah. And she went, okay, great. Thank you. and walks away. Hmm. Are the previews happening now or what? I think maybe the previews had just started. Okay. Okay.

And then she comes back leading a man in his maybe early to mid-20s, plops him down in the chair, and this is her adult adult severely developmentally disabled son and then she goes and bones out sits somewhere else in the theater oh my god and this is not an a short or uh easy and accessible film no and look uh uh you know yeah this is tricky territory this is very tricky i did not know this story at all. I cannot diagnose this man. I don't know what exactly his struggles were. I do know my struggle was he sat there the entire time,

and any time there was a woman on screen, he'd go, Oh, my God, so beautiful, so beautiful. Oh, my God, so beautiful, so beautiful. All right. What about when Hugo Weaving played a lady in the old folks home oh no

oh no oh no okay okay I see I see alright so a lot of talking anytime Tom Hanks was on screen verbalized all of his emotions

a beautiful woman he'd go Zachary kiss her Zachary kiss her kiss her Zachary oh no oh no so beautiful Zachary

so just like a running commentary oh my god so my takeaway was I think I like that movie do you know what I'm saying like I didn't love it and I definitely didn't dislike it but I was like I don't know and it's like you're fucking all these like plot lines are interweaving and a lot

of the connections are subtle yeah it's right they're Hugo weaving they're Hugo I'll leave I I'll leave. I'm sorry. Ben, can you add in like a guitar riff anytime we get fingered? Yeah, absolutely. Like a Seinfeld bass slap?

Finger. Oh, boy. So we all had different theatrical experiences. So I watched it. Mine was great. Yeah, mine was great. Do you remember where you saw it, Bobby? Union Square. Oh, I missed. I watched it. Bobby's was great. Yeah, mine was great. Do you remember where you saw it, Bobby? Union Square.

Oh, I missed. I'm sorry. And it was the one up upstairs with the balcony. But I was in the bottom part. I was in the orchestra. Sure, sure. That's the way to do it. But Union Square, one reason I don't go there a lot is sometimes you'll get, you know,

stuffed into one of the little theaters. Yeah. You know? But if you're in the big theater, very nice. Very nice. I hate those little theaters. Yeah, they suck. Especially if it's like you're going to see your whatever, your Civil War, your big movies, and they're

showing them on eight screens and you don't know. You don't know. That happened with us seeing Force Awakens. At the MC25 we got put in one of them shoe boxes. Opening night, you know? That's okay though. Ben, what do you think about Little Theaters? Well, I mean, it's intimate, but I don't know. I feel like I want to be in a big room.

This is a real conflict, because you like big rooms, but you also like fucking. That's true. So the intimacy. He's the fuckmaster. I am the fuckmaster. Cloud Atlas. Cloud Atlas. Yeah, I watched it again for the first time since theatrical viewing two nights ago.

Yep. And I think this movie's great. So good. Great. Yeah. It's great. I watched it this morning. Yeah.

Watching it in the comfort of my own home without anyone else talking. Yeah. Like a big upgrade. This movie went up like three points, you know? Sure. Yeah. It was like maybe like a, like a, like a gentleman's 6.5 and now it's maybe like, like a nine, you know? Yeah. Yeah. It's a great movie. Yeah. Yeah. It was like maybe like a Gentleman's 6.5, and now it's maybe like a 9, you know? Yeah.

Yeah. It's a great movie. Yeah. Yeah. It's really phenomenal. So let's talk about the plot of this one because it's very straightforward. Yeah. It's easy.

It's easy. Bobby, go right ahead. What's the plot of the movie? So which one should I start with? Should we just do a take turns with the plots? I can start when it you tell one big story. Let's all hand off. That's right.

So you've got several actors playing several roles that span several centuries. There's like a stock company. An ensemble. Yeah. So you've got, and in every story there is a hero, a villain. There's a lead. There is a love interest. There is, what am i trying what else

is there in every story there's a struggle i mean of course there's there's a struggle but then there's um so let's just talk about the first one so you've got the movie the book end of the movie let's start with that you've got tom hanks as uh you know three centuries into our present. Um, so three centuries into the future, uh, he is living on the big Island of Hawaii, um, after some sort of an apocalyptic nuclear event, because they talk about rad levels at some point. They do.

They do. Um, so he's a survivor man. He's a tattooed man living in a very primitive society on the big Island. Yeah. Uh, a very small society. He,

uh, is feeling he's, he's wrecked with guilt because he did not try to save his like nephew just some sort of relative just relatives from an attack from Hugh Grant and his cannibal friends Hugh Grant plays a cannibal in that one Hugh Grant plays like shitty people yeah this is the thing everyone's roles change except for Hugh Grant who's always a jerk watch out for Hugh Grant and Hugo Weaving's always a jerk. Watch out for Hugh Grant. And Hugo Weaving's

always a jerk too. Both of them, right? Yeah, I guess that's true. Or Hugo Weaving's always some sort of obstacle. He's not. Yeah. Yeah, I guess so.

I mean, I only, like there's in like, you know, he's a kind of anti-Semitic in one. Or no, he's not anti-Semitic. He's racist. Yeah, he's racist in one

and then he's an assassin in one and then he's, you know, a stovepipe hat wearing, physical, you know, body of his own. Physicalization of mental illness? Of terror, yeah. I don't know. He goes like, oh, I'm old Georgie, watch out for me. And then he's a mean nurse.

A mean nurse. It is most of all. A real mean nurse. He is a nurse ratchet type, you know, scary nurse type. Can I just interject? Who's doing a Mrs. Doubtfire impersonation also. He sounds like Mrs. Doubtfire. It's very strange.

It's really weird. I just want to interject because I think this is, like, really brilliant. I think the final chunk of the financing came from them selling the rights to Warner Brothers, right? For the film, the Wachowskis. Yeah, the distribution rights. And if I remember correctly,

there was a big New Yorker article, which I suggest people look up and read, about the Wachowskis before Cloud Atlas came out, about where they were in their careers and how this was a big step forward for them in trying to make a different kind of film. And they said the big selling point we gave to Warner Brothers was,

because this film was so expansive, it was so hard for them to get a sense of what it would be, how it would work, what audience it was for. And they said we came up with a very simple through line which is the movie starts out with Tom Hanks as a bad person and 600 years later he becomes a good person

right okay the official synopsis describes it as how one soul is shaped from a killer to a hero and an act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution. Yeah. So, like, I think they designed, like, the Hanks arc

so that he becomes, you know, from people who are aggressively bad to people who are just sort of, like, got a bad attitude, you know, to the hero. But wait, when is he... Oh, right, okay. He's a straight-up villain in the first story. I completely forgot that that's him. Who tries to kill jim sturgis yeah he does his gold to steal

his ring and some other stuff um but let's get back to this future so so i'll try to i'll try to do this succinctly but uh so meanwhile so he lives in this like horrible like kind of barbaric post-apocalyptic society yes but meanwhile there is a there is a sort of uh uh elysium type colony outside of earth um and occasionally they do tests and holly berry is like one of these people who is you know very intelligent the one percent they have all the cures to diseases and blah blah but they're still not doing well with radiation so every time she goes to this island she should watch out she wants to get to the top of this volcano because there's some sort of communications tower on it. They can shoot a signal into space. No one wants to help lead her there because they're afraid of the cannibals with good reason.

They are cannibals. Yeah. Yes. And so she, after Tom Hanks saves her life, he convinces her. She convinces him to. No, he convinces her to. No, he saves the life of the baby. No, I'm getting confused.

It's okay. I'm not weaving. So he. I'm Hugo Weaving. I'm getting confused. It's okay. I'm not weaving. So he, I'm Hugo Weaving.

So she and Tom Hanks make it to the communication towers to get to this, you know, thing for some reason. And then there they uncover the truth about Soon Me. Well, okay. World 1-1. Right, right, right. Anyway, so the whole point is they have to get from here through the cannibals to the top of the thing. You gotta get to the top of the mountain.

Get to the mountain. And Hugo Weaving is a green goblin. Yeah, who is just in Tom Hanks' head. With a top hat. He's dressed like Fagin. Called Old Georgie. Old Georgie. And I think he's a particularly terrifying character.

I think he's a very scary fucking thing. Quite strange. Especially because in this already incongruous environment, he is a new element. Like an even more incongruous element. Yeah. But this is the book and it begins the movie and it ends

and it ends the movie but the movie begins with Tom Hanks in Zachary Tom Hanks giving some sort of monologue looking like

Jeff Bridges being run over by a truck which you find out he's just telling his grandchildren and great great grandchildren the story of

you know because after all isn't this a movie about stories it's about it's about humanity it's about life yeah and it's about sharing our connection through stories and it has this handshake structure where like you know things recur through these six stories yeah it's i so i fired this movie up my girlfriend watched 40 minutes of it and was just like i am going to

bed it's not it's especially at the beginning it's daunting what it's doing because the book as you guys might know it tells one story and then it moves to the next story and then the next and then the next

and the next and then meets in the middle with the big island story the future future future apocalypse and then it goes backwards it's like a parallelogram it's like

it's like nesting dolls it's like then it goes back to the fifth story back to the fourth and it ends again with the first now this movie they abandoned that and have them all woven together, which is the right decision.

It works well, yeah. But the first 40 minutes are throwing everything in your face. And it's hard because it's supposed to be kind of dancing, this movie. It's not an omnibus film because it is interwoven constantly. And the first 40 minutes kind of, it suggests that the movie is more complicated than it is. Because like you said, it's a pretty straightforward narrative. It's true. Each story is pretty straightforward.

Yeah, you get lost, but then really there's not much to it. And for a three-hour movie, it moves. Oh, yeah. There are a couple storylines that are a little, I would say, a little more plodding and some that are really exciting. The pacing isn't like always exact yeah but it's great and it's gorgeous it is it's gorgeous it is gorgeous it's gorgeous we did forget to mention in the future story everyone talks like mutley from wacky races

holly barry is fluent in their dialect and like every time she switches to it it's like okay that's yeah it's it's a little it's just, okay, that's kind of funny. It's a little, it's just condescending. It's sort of like when Hillary Clinton goes to a church in Iowa and has a different, you know. She's like, listen folks. Talks like she's from the Midwest. Y'all gotta understand. But I think one thing my girlfriend, Joanna, who we're about to see. Shout out to Joanna. We're going to see the shit-ass Civil War with Joanna.

One thing that she reacted to when she watched the openings of this movie is, why are white people playing Asians in this movie? And questions like that. Or like Halle Berry shows up in the 1930s plot line looking like Madonna. Looking like a weird white-faced Madonna. Playing a Jew-ass.

Yeah, playing a Jew. And I said to her, that's Halle Berry. And she said, no it isn't. Which was a fair reaction. See, that's the other thing. And you didn't have a response? I was like, well, I know what you're saying. Because this film is about

the sort of interconnectedness of the human spirit and certain energies and certain dynamics repeating over and over in time. And this is a recurring theme in the Wachowski's work is that you are not who you look like. And your, you know, your identity is beyond your, you know, your sort of shape or your skin or your like, you know. And I think there's an even simpler version of it that comes very clear in this film, you know, and looking back through the previous films that goes into this. But the idea that like we're all the same. Yeah, sure. And that's, I think, what I like about the movie.

It's not about reincarnation and there's never anything where it's like the soul has continued. It's just talking about we are all we're doing the same things over and over because humans are humans. I mean, like question for you guys, because obviously the gambit they pull is that they cast like, you know, they have a cast of about 12 and they have them all play different parts in these different stories. Like, if this movie was just literally like a giant ensemble piece where every story had different actors in it, it wouldn't work as well. No, absolutely not. Absolutely not.

I mean, that was the master show. Because their whole thing, I mean, I feel like there are two points you start to realize arc over all their films are every single person is important. You know, they detest anyone valuing themselves more highly over anyone else. You know, and structures and societies that do that. You know, I mean, slavery is like a big thing

that comes up in all their movies. In this one, it's literal. But both Matrix and Jupiter Ascending have this thing where people are harvesting human bodies for energy. You know, like that's a big thing. And then Speed Racer has this whole like the company is commoditizing. We are all slaves to capitalism.

Right. People turning them into products. Speed Racer is a crazy movie, Bobby. Haven't seen Speed Racer. Have not seen it. Oh, it's great. Check it out. The last line of Bound, which I forgot to mention when we did a Bound episode, but it's

like one of my favorite last lines of film ever where in Bound they keep on talking about That sure was a crazy lesbian heist drama. That's what they say. We sure got bound up in some drama. No, but like Bound is like, you know, a lot of the film is about how they're different. They're in love,

but they're fundamentally different people. And the last line is, Gina Gershon says, you know what's the difference between you and me? And Jennifer Tully goes, what? And she goes, nothing.

And it's like they've become one person. Like we're all the same fucking person when you get past the superficial stuff and so this movie gets at that idea now I mean I want to say like we've talked about this with the Matrix sequels

we've talked about with Speed Racer the Wachowskis often are doing something that maybe the world is not ready for them to do. Agreed. Usually it's something in the technological side, right? They're shooting a movie with kind of effects that our body, it's just cinema has not really reached it yet, and they're reaching.

Here I would say that Gambit is more the multicultural casting idea, the having people play all races and sizes and shapes. But people don't play all races, though. That's one thing. There's never blackface. There isn't. Which is very smart. There's a lot of whiteface. There's a lot of yellowface. There is. There's never blackface. They wisely avoid that, yeah. Well, I just think it's too loaded.

But then there was that association, like the people, then there was like the Chinese American Association or whatever was very upset that because of the double standard, it's like, well, you do yellow face and you do white face but why didn't you do black face and it's like there's no good explanation for this. That's right.

It's going to be problematic no matter what they do it. If they had done black face in this film it wouldn't have been to perpetuate stereotypes. It would have just been means to an end because that's the notion of the film. But the reality is for good reason if you put someone in blackface, everyone gets upset.

Of course. If Jim Broadbent had played the slave in the first story or whatever, that wouldn't have worked. Right. But it's just like, but that's the ultimate conclusion you reach where it's like,

you know, at least they didn't do blackface. Yeah. Where it's almost that you can forgive everything else where it's like, okay, they made Jim Sturgis look like a Korean man.

And Jim Starsi. And Keith David Korean man. And Jim Sturges. And Keith David, too. They did it to Keith David. A Korean woman, I believe. I can't remember. And then it's like, but at least there's no blackface. Well, but this is the thing. Like you say, there's no right answer to this.

And there's no like, oh, I think they threaded the needle. They tried something and here it is. This is what I'd like to say about it too. I think the makeup on, it's in the second story if we're going chronologically from the future to the past, right? The second story

is the Neo-Soul story. Yes. Oh, if you're going from the future to the past. Right? It is. I consider it the fifth story. Right.

So that's the one that has the most race swapping. Yes. Well, right, because it's set in Korea. Right, and we have two Asian actors the fifth story. Right. So that's the one that has the most race swapping. Yes. Well, right, because it's set in Korea. Right. And we have two Asian actors in the cast. Yeah. And everyone else is-

Duna Bae. Yes. And who's the other Asian actor? Her name is- Oh, I can't pronounce it. Oh, Jusun. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Both of them are fantastic.

She plays Yuna 939. Yeah. And both of them play other people in the other stories. Yes. But every other character in this film, including Hugh Grant, within that story, has to be given makeup to look more Asian.

Now, that's the biggest transformation. The look is very strange, and it's jarring. And even just from the trailer, that popped more than the other stuff. Yeah, they maybe could have done better with the makeup. Yeah. And when you're watching... It works in the assault to some extent

because it's the future already, so you're like, are these aliens? Like, what is this fucking thing. Yeah. And when you're watching It works in the assault to some extent because it's the future already so you're like are these aliens? Like what is this fucking thing? Yeah. But then I would say the Hugh Grant character

that he plays who is basically just like a fat sexist slob Yeah. Rapist. Yeah. Rapist with like a top knot or something.

A robot rapist. Robot. Clones. Clones. Clones. Yeah. He's tougher to get around. Because James Darcy and Jim Sturgis

are playing these sort of conservatively dressed almost cypher type characters. You're not quite sure what to make of them. Not cypher from The Matrix. Not cypher from The Matrix or The New Mutants. Too bad Joey Pants isn't in this. And not cypher rage, we should say also.

The reason that it's more forgivable, because I think there will always be something wrong with that sort of race swapping, is, again, the narrative. The themes of the movie, it's about how we all transcend these things. So when you have that to back up your reasoning, you get a piece of of you get like a piece of a pass this is the bigger point i want to get at which is that the neo-soul one jumps out not just because the makeup's the strangest but because the one that leads with that earliest

right because you're first into that story is james darcy in that makeup talking to duna bae who has a normal human face who is a korean right and he's doing an accent yes yeah but the other sort of race swappings come in later in the film. So like I'd say Halle Berry as a white woman comes in maybe 40 minutes. Sure. You know Duna Bay later plays a Mexican woman and that's like two hours into the movie.

You know like all that stuff sort of becomes integrated later and the main characters are being introduced to are like people playing their own race. And Duna bay's character as that mexican woman is in the credits mexican woman right yes yeah so it's like she's just that's what she is right but i think if you're watching the film from the get-go it's like okay so why is everyone playing themselves except the asian cast is like all fucking people with weird like

foreheads right right it's basically the asian makeup is like all fucking people with weird like foreheads, right? Right. It's basically the Asian makeup is like a forehead that sort of like makes the brow look completely different. Yeah, it like lowers their eyelids. It's odd. It's really, it's hard to look at. A little bit. It really is. It just looks very unnatural.

But I think as the film goes on, it sort of justifies that because then it like starts spreading the well. And there's this big point that was made by Halle Berry in an interview right and like better to have Halle Berry herself explain this what what she appreciates about this approach because I think it summed up perfectly if she was like she was shooting the the sexmas segment where she plays this this six months sorry it's sexsmith Freudian slip I'd like to sex her Smith I'd like to sex her, Smith. I'd like to sex Ben Whishaw, Smith. Yeah. I'd like to sex Agent Smith. He's a handsome guy. The thing she said

is I was shooting that segment and I was in this white makeup and everything and I realized... It was Jocasta. Jocasta? That's her name. New? Please carry on. I realized that this was the only film, by doing this, by having this approach to it, this was the only way that I could be in a film set in this time period and not play a slave.

Right. Because it's set in the 30s. You know, so for like as much as you're having like Jim Sturgis play a Korean man, you're also letting Halle Berry play roles that she could never play. Right. If I could counter, and I love this movie. Yeah, I just think that's an interesting point. Almost everyone who is in white makeup in this movie is playing a pretty minor role in their respective stories.

Agreed, agreed. Because the cast is still majority white. So your main cast, just to shout them out, is you got Jim Sturgis, who's the star, ostensibly, of the 1840s plot, set mostly on a boat. He's on a boat trying to get to his wife or fiance? His wife. No, fiance. Who is played by Duna Bay.

Right, who's playing a white woman. We're only really seen right at the end, but yes. He's playing a British, red-haired, freckled face. A red-haired aristocrat. Duna Bay as that woman reminded me of Juno Temple. Did you pick up on that? Yeah, no, that was interesting. Because it's just like talking to a co-worker at Juno Temple. Yeah.

I referenced Juno Temple in the last episode too. Yeah, because Julian Temple almost directed Speed Racer. Her father. You know what's another thing I want to throw out just very quickly? You know how Neil Blomkamp is threatening to make this Alien sequel? Don't do it, Neil.

I saw Aliens a couple weeks ago. I mean, by the time this fucking episode was made. Jim Cameron's Aliens? They screened it on Alien Day, which is this new holiday they're trying to make happen. And Sigourney Weaver did a big talk afterwards. And I went with my sister, Rom, who had never seen the movie before,

and our buddy, Rachel Lang, friend of the podcast. Great movie. Rachel loves Aliens, I know. And I'd never seen Aliens on a big screen before. What's your point? If they're doing this fucking Alien sequel, Juno Temple has to play Newt. Because the little girl

who plays Newt She would be a good Newt. looks identical to Juno Temple and that woman has never acted ever again so they're not going to get her to play. Quick sidebar,

don't make that movie. Jesus Christ. Neil Blomkamp is the most overrated director alive. I agree. But if you do do it, do it with Juno Temple. No thank you.

Who's a great actress. So I'm shouting out the cast. I'm doing it. Alright, so you've it, do it with Juno Temple. No, thank you. Who's a great actress. So I'm just, I'm shouting out the cast. I'm doing it. Alright, so you got Jim Sturgis. You got Ben Whishaw, who is the star of the 1930s. We're talking lead of each story. Yeah. Yeah. Star. The 1930s plot about a struggling gay

composer trying to make it work. Yeah. And then you've got Halle Berry, who is the star of the 70s plot, which is kind of like a journalist thriller. It's a Louisa Ray mystery. It's a Louisa Ray mystery. And then you've got Jim Broadbent, who is the star of the current day 2012 London. It's called the ghastly.

What's it called? Yeah. Something situation of Timothy Cavendish. I can't remember exactly. It's a bit of a farce. It's about an aging literary agent who is locked in an old folks home against his will. Yeah, it gets a plunger to the face. It also gets a plunger to the face.

Which I, watching again, I realized that plunger was CG. Did you notice that? Really? I think the stick was real. But the plunger itself was not real. I'm going to have to go back and check that out. The plunger was not a practical effect. Maybe Jim Broadbent's allergic to human excrement. Maybe they had to work around that.

I think it may have been they couldn't hear him. Interesting. Just pull up the clip later. I rewound it, and I was like, that plunger doesn't look real. Then you have Duna Bae, who is the star of the Neo-Soul 2144 as a replicant woman who is a waitress at a Korean, a Neo-Korean bar. And becomes the sort of face of a movement. And then you have Tom Hanks, who is ostensibly the star of the final plot that we talked about.

The great Thomas Hanks. But they are all in, pretty much all of them are in every story. A couple of missing spots, but you know, like Ben Whishaw plays Hugh Grant's wife in like one scene. Like there are little like drops like that and then they're supporting. Who it's implied has also fucked Jim Broadbent. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, oh yeah.

Now why'd they cut that scene out of the movie? Jim Broadbent and Hugh Grant in old age make, well no, Jim Broadbent's not an old age make. No, I want to see Broadbent in his real skin plowing Ben Whishaw. As a woman. The young Jim Broadbent that they use whenever he's reminiscing about

when he was fucking young, Susan Sarandon, was like, Jim Broadbent, there's no universe. Did he ever look like that? Jim Broadbent looked like that. Good sir, I know Jim Broadbent. And you are no Jim Broadbent. You have a normal person face. You don't look like a cartoon mouse.

Then there are all these supporting actors. A corpulent cartoon mouse. Well, look, Hugh Bonneville played young Broadbent and Iris, and that basically worked. That's fine. Yeah, it was fine. That's fine. You know, he's more of a cartoon mouse. Yeah.

Just a shout out to Hugh. Yeah, I would also cast Radigan from The Great Mouse Detective, I think could play young Jim Broadbent. He's busy. That guy's schedule's packed. Come on. And then you've got this supporting cast, Hugh Grant, always a villain. Always a villain. Yeah.

Hugo Weaving, always an obstacle of some sort. Susan Sarandon, like, I don't know. Was free that week. Yeah, around. Not really. She's stretching herself, except for, I mean, she wears a lot of weird makeup. She always plays an aspirational figure, sort of. I don't know.

She's sort of a mentor in the future plot. I don't know. In the future plot, she really doesn't serve much of a purpose. No. Keith David pops up a few times. Great actor, great voice. Yeah, I was going to say, the great Keith David. Let's refer to him by his full name.

The great Keith David. James Darcy pops up a lot, who's a great British young, he's not that young anymore, but handsome Brit. I love him. And David Ghiassi, or Ghiassassi I'm not sure how you pronounce his last name who is so good in Interstellar and is so good in this

I didn't fucking realize that was his name he plays Romilly in Interstellar he does the only film character in history to have my sister's name

yeah his main plot is the first one where he's the slave who Jim Sturgis and then he's got very small roles he's one of the 1%

in the future plot he is I think he's Louisa Ray's like brother or father but he's only seen in a photo the movie. He's one of the 1% in the future plot. He is. I think he's Louisa Ray's brother or father. He's only seen in a photo. He's only seen in a photo or whatever. Yeah, I think there's one other one he appears in. But yeah, so they're all popping up in each other's.

They're wearing crazy makeup. And the movie kind of starts out, I feel like, with big chunks of each story. And then it kind of starts cutting faster and faster between them as things go on. Let's try to set up another story. Because we set up the first one. The Neo Soul we've done, like, half the work on. Yeah, okay. Yeah, she's, like, a clone.

This is visually such a cool thing. They all pop out of these little drawers. She's a clone with, like, a limited brain almost or something. Like, she's been sort of programmed to not do much. It's a future fast food restaurant that in order to reduce costs on staff labor, clones employees who

only know how to serve burgers. But also the clones are used as justification for going. The clones are a selling point because it's like these men can slap the asses of the servers at your will. And there's some sort of morality that has been completely abandoned in this future.

The people doesn't... These aren't people. We see images of... Neo's soul seems to have been built over drowned original soul or something. It's sort of like a city in the sky almost. It's like a Jetson city. It's really... It's cool.

Yeah. So the Wachowskis, we should say, directed, like literally on set directed. It's sort of like a city in the sky. It's like a Jetson city. It's cool. So the Wachowskis, we should say, directed, like literally on set directed the two stories we talked about, the two future stories and the furthest past. Yeah, and Tom Twyker did the other three. Now apparently the three of them all mapped out everything together before they got to work. So I think they really consider themselves co-directors in every way. But technically that was the division.

And the credits acknowledge it. The credits say. So she realizes she becomes part of a revolution that seeks to, like, expose the truth about these clones and, like, have the other people revolt against, like, the way that the clones are being treated. I didn't really understand the broader picture of the revolution. What were they rebelling against other than the clones? That wasn't really clear to me. Is that brought up in the book? There's some sort of caste system and

there's this evil empire which is called... What's it called? Does everyone... The pure blood thing is like, I can't. There's a word for it. It doesn't matter. We can talk about these things called skirmishes, which is like we see a little bit of it in the movie.

That segment where they're almost arrested by these like people with like black visors and stuff. And then they like there's cool shootouts and stuff. Are the civilians. Oh, sorry. Go ahead. No, I was just gonna say say, her friend is the first person, I don't know, ever, but seemingly to sort of revolt against. I mean, there's a scene where a guy comes up and slaps her in the ass at the restaurant.

This is her friend who sneaks out at night. She's getting fucked by Hugh Grant and a horrible abuse of power. And she has a movie on her phone. Yes. I think she just has a clip of the movie. Just the clip. Yes. The movie, I have the title now.

It's called The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish. And in the movie, he's played by Tom Hanks. Right. In the film within the film, but it's the story of Jim Broadbent. This is an over-the-top adaptation of Jim Broadbent's storyline. But she gets her ass slapped one day at work and like turns back and slaps the guy and tries to escape.

Hugh Grant hits a button her collar just fucking like explodes and the blood squirts out of her neck. Gross. And it's like okay so this is these are the stakes. Like you're not free. We should say they've never seen you know the world outside of their fast food restaurant. And they can choose to kill you at any time

with the push of a button. And we should also say this story is being recounted by Duna Bay to James Darcy so we know that some sort of rebellion has already happened. Yeah, she's like being interrogated. Before her execution. We don't have much time so we should really just sum this one up.

I think we summed that one up. Jim Sturgis is this handsome revolutionary who sweeps her in. Yeah, who pumps her in and they fall in love. And the revolution doesn't really work. No.

No, the revolution fails. But some sort of seed takes hold. But I mean, and I think in the books it's a little clearer that like apocalypse is coming to this civilization

anyway. Yeah. Like, because the thing is, and again, these stories all shake each other's hands. We also know that because we've seen

the fucking Tom Hanks story. We know that. In the apocalypse world, and again, these stories all shake each other's hands. We also know that because we've seen the fucking Tom Hanks story. In the apocalypse world, they worship the teachings of Duna Bay's character, who's called Soon-Me 451, and they worship her big revolutionary speech that she gets. And as she's about to be executed, they're like, well, your voice doesn't matter, and she's like,

no, it's already been heard, and that's all that matters. Yeah, like you said, the seed has been planted. And in every, I think in most of the aspects, there's that. In most of the stories, there's that ending, but it's already been heard and that's all that matters. Yeah, like you said, the seed has been planted. And I think in most of the aspects there's that, in most of the stories there's that ending, but it's more eloquently delivered in that one, the Jim Sturgis. Right, where some of the handshakes are a little goofy, like the Timothy Cavendish story playing out in this weird movie, which is great, I have no objection, it's just goofy.

Yeah. Okay, so that's that story. The present day story is- Yeah, the Timothy Cavendish story is, I would probably say the weakest. Would you agree? I would too, but it's got some real pleasures. I like that it's there.

I like that it's there too. I think it's, one thing, why does Jim Broadbent say ruddy so much? He says it so much. He won't say any other swear word. Yeah. It's my ruddy car. You know what I do like about this story?

Where are my ruddy keys? I like that it has like Simpsons plotting where the first 25% of the story has almost nothing to do with the rest of it. So it opens. It's so dense at the beginning. It's a total misdirect. This is in the first 15 minutes of the movie. We open at a book party, a book launch for an autobiography written by a London gangster played by Tom Hanks. Of course.

And the book isn't doing well. He's sad. He got a bad review, I believe. He has the clip in his pocket. Yeah, he's making flirty eyes with an Indian woman played by Halle Berry. Sure, why not? That's her full appearance in that storyline.

It's just looking real good. So Tom Hanks is... Tom Hanks, and I think we all love... We probably all love Tom Hanks, right? Yeah, good guy. But, you know, usually, especially think we all love, we probably all love Tom Hanks, right? Yeah, good guy. But you know, usually, especially in the 90s,

especially when we grew up with him, an actor who, you know, stuck to like one kind of like specific lane. And here he's really thrown himself, I feel like, at every weird role he takes on.

And this is what I love about this movie is Tom Hanks started out as like a comedy actor. Yeah. He's known for being one of the best SNL hosts ever. Totally, totally. But then in movies,

he's usually like pretty straight line. He's usually an upstanding dude of some sort. Yeah, He's known for being one of the best SNL hosts ever. Totally. But then in movies he's usually like pretty straight line. He's actually an upstanding dude of some sort. Yeah. And like other than the lady killers maybe.

Sure. Like since from 1990 on Hanks is always playing an everyman or a subversion of an everyman. And then in this movie you get to see him

do like his fucking mad TV reel. And he throws a man he throws the critic off a building and kills him. That's the thing. I mean, you're watching this and you're like,

oh, this is weird and Tom Hanks is really funny, but this is really strange. He's doing this cockney accent. Is this just going to be a look inside the literary world? Throws him over the balcony. The critic explodes in like a bag of blood as he hits the ground. Yeah, it's pink mist.

He orders two fingers of tequila. He does. He does put some salt on his... And this turns Jim Broadbent's character into a sensation, because the book sales go through the roof. And because Tom Hanks is in prison, he's getting all of Tom Hanks' profits for this, or revenue. But then a bunch of Guy Ritchie extras try to collect the money from Jim Broadbent, so he goes...

They're Guy Ritchie's... They're just his brothers. They're just his brothers. The Ritchies. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so he asks his brother, Hugh Grant, in horrific old age makeup. Craziest. But it's a really funny face.

It's a funny face. It's like a droopy dog face. He looks like Droopy McCool from the Max Rebo Band. We had a long conversation about the Max Rebo Band yesterday. Griffin and I and JD. And then so he gets put in an old folks' ice. They want money. They want money. They want money.

He doesn't have it. He goes to his brother, and he's like, the brother's like, you ask me for money all the time. I'm not giving it to you this time. And you had sex with my wife. And you had sex with my wife,

and then he realizes, I could really fuck you over, and he's like, you know what? I will give you the money. Go to this hotel. We'll figure it out in the morning. Lay low for a little while.

Lay low, but he doesn't realize that he's just signed his life away to this horrible old folks home. Which his brother has a stake in. Yeah. And so where everyone is just mistreated and it's prison for old people. So that's the first 25% of that story.

And then the rest of that story is just Jim Broadbent trying to plan an escape from an old folks home. Gathering a bunch of senile folks and trying to break out. Like the big action scene is this. Just them trying to figure out how to start a keyless car. Yes. And, like, eventually figuring out that the button that says start

is how you turn the car on. And there's a very rewarding, like, with the old man who can only say, what does he, he can only say one thing. The parent sort of guy, yeah. Yeah, but then at the end

he, like, finds his voice and helps him out. And it's, like, very sweet. But this one is the only one that's, like, done explicitly with voiceover narration. Yeah, voiceover narration. It's a comedy. It's explicitly supposed to be funny,

I feel like, in a way the others aren't. It's got jaunty music. It's farcical. And it's got this sort of through line that we talked about where he's like, oh, and also I remember, like, all of a sudden he's like, I remember when I was a kid and I wanted to hook up with this lady and then I held a cat over my genitals

when the parents rumbled. You get this scene out of nowhere. The cat scratches his dick, he falls out a window, and then he makes a really good pussy joke. Yeah, and then he's just like, so that's why I never saw her again. And you're like, that's why you never saw her again? That feels like a reason to see her again. In the book, I had a question for you since you'd read it.

In the book, is this a movie? Is this adapted into a movie? So it is a movie within the book. And in the book, it's more... She doesn't get to watch it until... Soon-Mi doesn't get to watch it until the end of her story. It's like her reward before she dies. She gets to watch the movie.

There's something like... You can understand why the Wachowskis and Dwiker would be into this because it's like in the other instances... In the other stories stories you've got her story like Soon-Mi's story. Her story. Soon-Mi's acts

are what have caused ripple effects and it's like all these actions like these brave actions have caused ripple effects but in this one it's like a movie is what has persisted throughout all these generations. It is what inspires me. His story itself only has an effect on eight people.

But then the movie that's adapted for it, because you presume he writes a book out of this story. The book is funny. It becomes a movie. The movie is this Frank Capra-esque noble. I will not be imprisoned against my will. And people are affected by it for generations

of art yeah okay so that's that storyline okay so the previous storyline the San Francisco storyline is probably the simplest

in a weird sort of way because it's just like this supposed to be this kind of like hard-boiled like mystery thriller like a silkwood kind of thing

exactly in the book it is subtitled a Louisa Ray mystery as if there's a series of Louisa Ray mysteries, right? Well, and we see that Frobisher, not Frobisher, fuck, sorry, Cavendish, the publisher in the next story, wants to publish one of these Louisa Ray mysteries. That's the handshake there.

Right. So it's Halle Berry. She's the daughter of a famous journalist. She's a journalist. Yeah. But she kind of just does- She does puffy stuff. Yeah, she does puffy stuff.

But she's trying to be more serious. Spyglass magazine. Spyglass magazine. Yeah, and She does puffy stuff. Yeah, she does puffy stuff. But she's trying to be more serious. Spyglass magazine. Spyglass magazine. Yeah, and the other puffy stuff she does is marijuana. Oh, yeah. She likes marijuana. The 70s, baby. Puffing that dang weed.

She has a kid friend who lives above her. Yeah, maybe my least favorite element of the film. Not sure why that's in there. A lot of stuff in this movie. Yeah, I just don't like that kid. He's bad. It's not a great performance. It's a very stage

mom coach performance. She's trying to expose this nuclear power plant that's unsafe or whatever. It's unsafe intentionally and owned by coal companies or oil companies to destroy nuclear power's reputation. So that when this nuclear power plant melts down and kills

hundreds of thousands of people, no one will trust nuclear power again we'll only use oil and coal again the handshake there is that James Darcy's character who is younger in the previous story is now old and like wants to expose but gets assassinated yeah like and but

the I feel like the crucial point of this story is the music itself yes is that that she is drawn to this music the Cloud Atlas sex tape. Yeah. Right? Yes. Which recurs through all the movies,

but this is the one where it's like physical. Where the person listens to it a bunch. Yeah, and it's like talked about. They're like, oh, this music is so familiar, but like so rare and strange. The guy at the record shop hears it for the first time

and he's like, oh, this is amazing. Yeah. But then at the book party where Tom Hanks throws the guy out the window, the band is playing a song, lyrics set to that. In the Neo Soul story, Jim Broadbent's an old blind musician playing it on his future organ.

Yeah, whatever it is. And I think that's one of the most impressive things about it to me. Because I was thinking about Stranger Than Fiction. Remember that movie? Of course. Yeah, we talked about it in the last episode. We mentioned it last week. That's so weird.

Stranger Than Fiction. Remember that movie? Of course. Yeah, we talked about it in the last episode. We mentioned it last week. That's so weird. But you know, like, any time a movie tries to represent, you know, high art,

and it's never quite right, and in Stranger Than Fiction, the Emma Thompson character is supposed to be this, like, beloved, you know, wonderful novelist, and every quote you get from it is awful, and it sounds like it's written

by, like, a freshman in college. I mean, me and Griffin were just talking about that because we were talking about this movie and I was talking about Mr. Holland's opus. I don't know if you've seen Mr. Holland's opus, but you know when the opus is finally played at the end and it's kind of whack. It's a little underwhelming. It blows chops. But in this,

it's like they managed to create a piece of music that does sound like the type of thing that would be that inspirational and transformative. And as we get to the next plot, which is about the composing of that music by this young English composer, Robert Frobisher. Yeah. The great Benjamin Wishaw.

Who is working as an amanuensis to Jim Broadbent's grumpy old composer of something, Vivien Ayers or something. Vivien Ayers. And I love the structure of this one, which is we start with him and James Darcy in bed. The hotel manager's knocking on the door. Well, we actually start with him committing suicide in a bathtub oh right and we play yes

um and and he slips out the window with just the guy's waistcoat right and he's about to go on this trip to go work with a composer right and the rest of this uh story is told through letters that he's writing to james darcy who's his great love that he can't be with. Which is, are these letters then discovered by somebody? By Halle Berry. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yes, right. So there's a lot of, but he composes this music. Composes it.

While he's working for Broadbent's composer character. Broadbent's like a great composer who's sort of gone to sea. He's like old. In the books, I think it's more clear that he's like blind and syphilitic. Like he's like a gross old man. But so he's sort of giving him scraps, and Ben Whishaw's turning him into something more, and he thinks this relationship can become some sort of symbiotic thing

where he helps him out, and then eventually Broadbent will throw the spotlight back onto him and give him the spotlight for this grand opus that he's working on, which is The Cloud Atlas Sextet. It is his magnum opus. It is the defining work of his life. And so the music for this film was composed by Tveker. Tveker and his friend. I is his magnum opus. It is the defining work of his life. And so the music for this film was composed by Tveker. Tveker and his friend.

I forget his name. But it sounds like a terrible idea. I mean, as you said yesterday, David. Reinhold Hale and Johnny Clayman. This shouldn't have been good. When you hear that the music's going to be crucial, you're like, oh, who are they going to get? What big name composer are they going to bring in for this? And I bet David Mitchell was like, that's going to be

the hardest thing. That's going to be your hardest job. You're going to need to nail that. Because in the book, obviously, you just go, it's the best music you've ever heard. It's a crazy, haunting piece of music that recurs throughout centuries. Great. But you said yesterday when we were talking about it, you were like, can you imagine the meeting where they're like, what are you going to do about the music? And then one of the three directors

is like, I'll take care of it. Don't worry. I got it. I got it. Scene run, little run, did that. Yeah. Because like fucking, you know, like Clint Eastwood and Robert Rodriguez scored their own films. And when you watch those movies, you're like, yeah, this is. Yeah.

Clint Eastwood put a finger on his piano. That's how he scores. It feels like an afterthought. It feels like the director just being like, I just want to get this finished. Let me just. I do feel like Eastwood, he did. Didn't he eventually stop doing it? Because like, I think even he realized like, yeah, me just strumming on a guitar for five minutes.

Gran Torino may have been his last one. Because the Gran Torino song from Gran Torino is the craziest thing in the world. Oh, the one that he kind of like. It's so weird. But you know what? No, he did do the music for American Sniper. Oh, he did? Yes, he did.

Because there's a track at the end. There's the cue that he wrote at the end of American Sniper over the footage that I think is really good and they've never released. I'm looking for it. The music? It's the thing I like most about American Sniper. I like Bradley Cooper's performance in that. Yeah, he's good in that.

Yeah. I like it when there was that weird baby that everyone made fun of. Yeah. That movie's just confusing. I don't really remember it, to be honest. No. And I saw it. I saw it twice because I just want to have some solid opinion about it.

And it's still just so nebulous in my mind. What else is... What's the name of the other guy? It's Viker's friend. So, by the way, Eastwood did not compose the music, but he composed one theme. Oh, so it's just this end theme that I can't fuck. Some other guy did. It's not on the soundtrack.

I don't remember that. Yeah, it's called Tanya's Theme. It's really good. Anyway, the final, wait, well, should we say anything more about the Wish shot? I feel like we just want to get everything down because we're running out of time. He's trying to write this magnum opus and hoping to get back to his love. He realizes Vivian is just going to screw him, so he tries to kill him.

He doesn't. He does shoot him, though. He shoots him. He's on the run from the law. He also tries to fuck him. He can't figure out where emotionally he stands with this guy. What do I got to do? Is he my enemy? Is he my enemy?

Is he my lover? I'm gonna expose you as a deviant. Also having an affair with his wife Halle Berry. Played by Halle Berry. Now in the book that affair is more fleshed out. Yeah. And is a big deal. It's a little thrown away. And is more of the problem. Like the affair. Whereas in this it seems to be more like artistic jealousy than

it is like emotional jealousy. And the affair in this is sort of thrown out as just sort of like feels indebted to them. It's just black chance. He says it's just, he says it's just physical. It's just,

it's not like, I'm in love with this woman. Because he tells the boyfriend that. Yeah. But the thing is, and you know he's doomed because it does start with, for a movie that's already

playing so much of time, almost every story kind of starts in media res or something. And it starts with him in a bathtub about to kill himself. And you kind of know he might not make it. And the way these letters sound is almost like his long goodbye to his lover. But he kills himself after completing the composition. And we connected that Darcy gives the documents,

is the entryway into the story for Louisa Ray. And the sequence that I fucking love there's like a long scene with them in an elevator which A I like any scene that's shot with

one dominant color right which is red like the lights go off and it's red which sort of gets back to I think this Wachowski idea of like we're all the same

because if like you're in bright red like that then like the color of your skin is no longer visible and it's the idea that she like is I sort of harp on this scene but I just like the scene a lot I know we're moving and it's the idea that she like is i i

sort of harp on the scene but i just like the scene a lot i know we're moving backwards it's really really good she comes out of a hallway they live she he lives in the same building as her she's at a party this guy's hitting on her she's clearly like fucking men like famous guy yeah like i can't fucking deal with this gets in the elevator the elevator. He holds the thing open for her. She's like, nice to see the chivalry isn't dead. He, of course, we know is a gay man. And she's in this safe zone where in a world where everything's like a threat to her, either like a physical threat or a sexual threat. Here's this man who like treats her with respect and listens to her. Appreciates her like career.

Yeah. And they're just in this red box, you know, having this connection. And at the end of it, he sort of, as they talk about journalistic principles, how far she'd go with her story, the responsibility she feels to the people, he decides, as an old man with very little to lose, you know, who's already lost his great love, has been living in the wake of this,

to give her the first key to this story because he thinks she can save the people. Yeah, I just love that. No, I love it too, and I think that's, you know, the makeup is always a little goofy, but like old Darcy looks okay. I think it's probably the best makeup job. Probably the best makeup job. Yeah.

I mean, apart from the future people. Apart from Hugh Grant Cannibal, which I think is a tremendous makeup job. But I think they over-aged him because like in the timeline, it's only like 35 years. It's 35. And he looks like he's 90. He does look like he is. And he should be about 60. But I think, yeah, you're right. I think they went over the top with it. Hardak ages you, you know? Hardak ages you. he's 90. He does look like he should. He should be about 60. But I think. I think. Yeah, you're right.

Yeah. I think they went over the top of it. Hardak ages you, you know. Hardak ages you. That's true. He's had a sad life. Yeah. And then the final story.

Or do you want. Oh, no. The final story in 1849 in the Pacific Islands. Yeah. Is about. He's a lawyer, I think. Like, he's like a businessman of some sort played by Tom Sturgis. He's got like a nice suit and hat.

And he's gone to the Chatham Islands, which is off the coast of New Zealand, to negotiate something. And he has this encounter with a stowaway slave on the ship when he's going back to England. And they form a connection and he saves this slave's life.

Because evil Tom Hanks is trying to kill Jim Sturgis to steal his treasures. A lot of stuff's going Because evil Tom Hanks is trying to kill Jim Sturgis to like steal his you know treasures. Right. A lot of stuff's going on. Tom Hanks is like a crooked doctor

who's slowly poisoning him so like he will die and then he'll just take life. And he wrote these letters that are being read by six by Frobisher in the next story

that you know Jim Sturgis' character and Only half of them. Right. And Frobisher's like really intent on finding out what happened. They were published.

Yeah, and it's this sort of great account. And you've got, like, Jim Broadbent is, like, a mean ship captain, and there's this really fun sequence where David Giasi, like, scales the sails of the ship and, like, does all this crazy ship stuff. Well, did we set up David Giasi's character? He's a slave stowaway.

They're planning on killing him. Well, he shows up in jim sturgis's room they didn't even know he was on the boat because before they dock they get to they're on land and jim sturgis has to watch this guy getting whipped and it's like this is horrible but he sort of just turns and i you know goes along as if nothing happened this guy stows away on the ship and he's like please please please my life is in your hands don't kill me and sturgis is like you're skilled i i should tell them that you're here so they can hire you as a hand and he's like okay if you're so good on a ship then why don't you you know lower impress us lower the sails and he like starts climbing up what this guy's the fucking most physically

impressive dude i've ever seen oh he's in great shape. Yeah. But he's doing like crazy shit with like just one rope and he's like climbing a whole mass. It's a really cool scene. And the second he starts climbing, Jim Broadbent's like, give me my fucking gun. Give me my whiskey. Right, right. We're going to shoot this guy. No, I don't think he, well, I think, doesn't he ask someone to shoot? It doesn't matter.

Whatever. Yeah. But the plan is like, he's like, well, you just said you'd give him a chance. He's like, I don't fucking care. Right, right. He's a slave. I'm not going to do that. And Jimster just in this moment, you you know sort of knocks him off trajectory the guy drops the

sail and they realize how impressive he is right and jimster just saves this man's life by giving him you know freedom and that's the thing about now that we've covered all that's the thing about these movies these like little things kind of build over like you know like we like ripples like you know like they sort of well there's no such thing as a small act as kind of build over, like, you know, like ripples. Small acts of kindness. Well, there's no such thing as a small act as kind of what it's also saying. Right, exactly, right. And, I mean, the final, is it the final line of the movie?

It's a crucial line in the book, and it's definitely one of the last lines of the movie, where he's saying, like, this character is reunited with his wife, fiancée, Duna Bay, Redhead, and says, like, I'm going to be an abolitionist. Like, I don't think, like. Which is, let's say, probably the worst makeup job in the entire film. She looks like Raggedy Ann.

She looks like, yeah. And, like, and he says, you know, I'm going to be an abolitionist, and I decry the slave movement. I think Hugo Weaving. Hugo Weaving. Is the one who's like, are you kidding me? Like, you know, you'll be a drop in an ocean or whatever. Mr. Anderson.

And he says, like, what is the ocean if not a multitude of drops? Yeah, and that's beautiful. And that's the idea, right? That's the whole fucking idea. It's great. My story about sitting in the theater was incomplete because I sobbed at that line. It's a great line. I sobbed at it.

And, like, it seems like a very easy, cloying little thing, but it's so effective, especially after two and a half hours. Well, this is the thing. I feel like a lot of the things in this movie, when described, sound cheesy or they sound easy, or they sound a little too obvious, but the whole impact of the movie is that you're seeing this, it all works because it's all together. And when it's built to that after three hours, you're so in and the music is with you. When you see the closing credits and you're like, oh, there's Tom Hanks. He was that one in that guy.

Yeah. They do sort of a who's who in the closing credits. I mean, here's the thing for me, okay? I like overanalyzing these things, psychoanalyzing these things. I know you hate it when I do this. No, I don't always hate it. I just sometimes hate it. I think this one's fine.

I think you won't have objections. Ben, I feel better. Oh, yeah, shoot, shoot. Sorry, guys. Harumph, harumph. We've talked about, in our Matrix episode, how the first Matrix film spawned a lot of bad things from people who misinterpreted what was going on in the film.

Right? The men's right movement. I mean, Columbine was blamed on the Matrix, which I think was incredible. Let's not say that the Matrix completely spawned the men's right movement, but they certainly took... But the red pill. There were all these elements that people misinterpreted, right? Yeah, absolutely.

The Matrix didn't create bad people, but bad people looked at The Matrix and were like, this is reaffirming that thing I believe, and misinterpreted the film, and then did shitty things in the name of The Matrix. And even the worst of all was just the new metal movement, right? But what's your point about this movie? Okay, so then the Matrix reloaded

and revolutions become super philosophical and like away from the cool badass stuff. And then Speed Racer and Cloud Atlas and I think this continues on to Jupiter Ascending

and certainly Sense8 from what I understand although that's the thing I haven't seen yet. Me neither. Have you seen Sense8, Bobby? No. I think Sense8's kind of

doing the same thing as this except no makeup this time, right? Right. It's just different people. Sensei Bobby? No. I think Sensei's kind of doing the same thing as this except no makeup this time. Right? It's just different people. Yes. And they switch minds within different bodies. Yeah. They become so thoroughly unconcerned with seeming cool. They become so achingly

sincere which is a term I've used before. That's a good point though because Speed Racer is like that. Certainly Speed Racer is this very open hearted like straightforward emotional certainly. Speed Racer is this very open-hearted, straightforward, emotional movie. And there are all these desperate pleas for people to look around and respect each other and realize that the Matrix was this narrative of the one. You're going to save everyone. Your job is to save everyone because everyone's important,

but it's still putting one person on the pedestal. The rest of the movies become about everyone's fucking important. Every life is important. The way we all treat each other is important you know everyone is everyone is given the opportunity to be like the hero but then in seeing the way everyone interacts you realize that everyone was already here to begin with and it's this idea i talked about in the speed racer episode where at the end the reason why that final race doesn't play out as like an underdog moment for speed racer to win is it's as much about his family winning it's about this guy who they believed in and who they love wins and they most of that sequence beautiful film you'll cry but but and in this movie i think there's also that weird optimism of like even if tom hanks is a mean old

quack in this story like you know there's a chance for progression there's a chance for like heroism to like you know sort of take root over several generations and like maybe pay you know like progress is possible but these movies feel like them constructing like a hundred million dollar soapboxes to stand up and go like please be kind to each other which so many people like who have i think turned against their works there's like that's fucking corny and it's cheesy and they go in broad strokes but it's clearly so impassioned and genuine yeah you know and it's like either this movie's gonna work for you or it's not but for me i think all three of us when you hit that final line and it's so simple and it's so direct and jim sturgis is a guy who's good at like when he's misused he feels like a

wet blanket but if given the right words like this it's like he just feels like a really good guy yeah what do you think of Sturgis, Bobby? I'm not a big fan of Jim Sturgis. I think he's fun in this. I think I'm with you on this. I think he's good in this. I was, I found myself thinking about him for the first time in a long time

while re-watching it this morning. Yeah. I was just like, oh, I like you, but I don't really understand, like, why I,

why I, he's just fine. I think he's fine. He's just, he's kind of fine. I mean, he's about to be in a TV show. I hadn't thought about him for a while,

but he's about to be in, Sturgis and Schwimmer, Make the Food, or whatever it's called. Yeah, that's what it's called. That's the proper title. I mean, he's about to be in a TV show. I hadn't thought about him for a while, but he's about to be in Sturgis and Schwimmer, Make the Food, or whatever it's called. Yeah, that's what it's called. That's the proper title. When did he make One Day? Right after this. Right after this.

That was sort of his last big leading man thing. Yeah, that and that bombed. Let's briefly, we should wrap up, but let's briefly talk about the box office. Yeah, and then there are two other segments I want to do, but let's talk about the box office first. Okay, because it's 1 p.m. I know. We'll be out of here. Forget the box office. What segments do you want to do?, but let's talk about the box office first. Oh, Jesus. Okay, because it's 1pm. I know. We'll be out of here. Forget the box

office. What segments do you want to do? No, let's talk about the box office. Well, it opened to 9.6 million. It was such a bummer. Awful. It actually did well overseas. It made about 110 overseas. So it totally collected like 130 or something like that. Yeah. But it made 27 mil

domestic. Yeah, that's terrible. They thought it was going to do like 20 million opening weekend which still would have been low for how much the film cost and then like the reasonable expectations were like the lowest it would go is like 15

and then the storm hit and it was like 9 and the movie never recovered. So can you give me the five? Can you at least number one is a movie that had been number two

the previous week. Oh really? It jumped up? Very rare, yes. Okay, so it's 2012. It's October. Is it a horror film? Nope. It's an Oscar-winning film. Argo. Yes. Okay. Number one. Number two, Cloud Atlas.

Okay. Number three is a film you've talked about multiple times on this podcast. I know exactly what film it is. It is Hotel Transylvania. Number four is a horror film that had been number one the previous week and obviously collapsed like 70%, you know. Insidious 2? No, fair guess.

It's one of those, you know. Yeah. Sinister? No. Sinister is number nine. Oh, really? Yeah. Give me a slight hint.

It's a four. Paranormal Activity 4. Yeah. And then number five is another horror movie that, I mean. So we have three horror movies in the top ten simultaneously? Yeah, yeah. It is October. It is October.

Give me one hint on the other horror movie. It's a sequel adaptation of a video game. Oh, Silent Hill, whatever it's called, Resurrection. Revelation, I believe. Revelation. Forgot about that one. With Jon Snow and maybe other people. Is Ronda Mitchell back in that one?

No, I think it's Adelaide Clemens maybe or someone like that. It's one of our young stars of tomorrow. But, you know, I mean, it's no surprise. And it seems like if the storm was when that was part of it, then yeah, it seems like everything sort of conspired against this movie anyway. There's a literal storm and I forgot also the storm of Hotel Transylvania. I mean, that film, there was just chaos in the wake of it. It was impossible for any other movie to open after HT. But I forgot about this. Everyone was checking in.

But we do have to do it. For a two-week stay. We do have to do the burger report. The suite. Right? That's one of the things you want to do. Yeah, I'll do it quickly. So then we have three segments.

I'll do burger report quickly. Oh, you have two other segments? Yeah, fuck, yeah. Oh, Jesus, Griffin. All right. And we also have a book report, but we'll read that next week. Yeah, we're not doing that this week. I went to Hollyweird recently. Yeah. Do you know about the burger report, Bobby? It's where we talk about burgers. report, but we'll read that next week. Yeah, we're not doing that this week. I went to Hollyweird recently.

Yeah. Do you know about the burger report, Bobby? It's where we talk about burgers. Yeah. Okay. When we see famos eating burgers. I want to hear the story, though. You went to Hollyweird.

You were looking. You were trying to start a burger report. I was in Hollyweird for two days, right? I had to do a table read for the tech. And I flew out. We did rehearsals. We did the table read. And then the next day, my flight wasn't until 10 p.m. So I had a full day., we did rehearsals, did the table read and then the next day my flight wasn't until

10pm. So I had a full day. I had to check out of the hotel at like noon. So I had like 8 hours. I had 8 hours until I was going to get picked up to go to the airport. And I decided I'm going to leave my bags at the front desk and I throw on my sunglasses. I'm going to do an 8 hour burger crawl.

I'm going to go to as many burger places as I can. How many burgers did you eat? I only ate 2. I ate 1 for lunch, I-hour burger crawl. I'm going to go to as many burger places as I can. I only ate two. I ate one for lunch. I ate one for dinner. Right? No, I didn't even get one for lunch. I only ate one for dinner.

Okay? So literally what I was doing, I was a skittish young man wearing sunglasses with a heavy backpack, walking into burger places, scanning the horizon, and immediately walking out. So I think everyone called 911 after I left. I looked like someone planning my next domestic terrorist location. I understand.

But I lost track at a certain point. I think I went to at least 12 burger places, perhaps 15. Wow. But what were you doing in these places? Walking in, scanning, walking out. Oh, I see. So you didn't take seats in it.

No. I mean, at one place, like halfway through, I got a beer, you know? At one place, I used the bathroom. I understand. But I didn't want to spend money on Ubering, so I would like, okay, what's the closest place? I'd Yelp that. I'd walk there.

And I'd go, what's the next closest place? I'd walk there. This filled up eight hours. Okay. Okay? But no sightings. I'm going through all of them. Fucking nothing, right? And I'm going all over the place. I no sightings. I'm going through all of them. Fucking nothing.

Right? And I'm going all over the place. I'm going chains. I'm going local. I'm going hole in the wall. I'm going like bars that serve burgers. Right? Everywhere. Fucking No one's eating a, no one famous is eating a burger. No famous. Anyway. Okay? So then I'm walking

and I like had one last place I was gonna go to and I was like, and then I'm gonna get the fucking lift to come pick me up from this place, bring me back to the hotel, go to the airport. Right. And I'm walking to this final place and then I look and I see a sign. This is a burger place. It says burger on the signage, but this didn't show up on my Yelp. Okay. What's this place called?

Plan check. That's a plan check. That's a weird thing. That's weird. Wait Check. That's a weird thing. That's weird. Wait, this feels like a sign from the gods. My podcast is called... It's a sign from the gods and also the worst name burger joint I've ever heard of. Yeah, but that's why.

Plan P-L-A-N. Check. Okay, so you go into... I'm here two letters off. You go into Plan Check Kitchen and Bar on Fairfax Avenue or Wilshire Boulevard? I think it was the one on Fairfax. Okay. And I sit down very close to the door,

and I go, I'm going to keep my head on a swivel. I had a delicious burger. An unbelievable burger. I think I got the plan check burger that Ted Schiller won, which had salt on the bun, which was interesting, fun, and delicious. Sort of a pretzel bun or just a salted bun? A regular bun with salt.

Oh, I see it. It looks very nice. It was a great fucking burger. Can you swivel that screen over, David? Yeah, this is a chicken burger, but you get the idea. It was delicious. I got waffle fries. I had some delicious local... Did it come in this

little cast iron? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Very cute. I love this place. It was hip. And I'm getting there like 7 o'clock, right? And I was like, okay, I need to leave for the airport in like an hour. Head in a swivel. Look around. A bunch of young, hip people are coming in. I was like, okay, I need to leave for the airport in like an hour. Head in a swivel. Look around. A bunch of young, hip people are coming in. I was like, this feels good.

This place feels like a hotspot. It's a Friday night or Saturday night. It's a bar. Fucking people are coming in. I'm eating my burger. I'm waiting. I'm waiting. This is where it's meant to be.

And who walks in? I got to know. Jacob Robinson. Don't know who that is. He's one of my dad's old graduate students at NYU. My dad teaches at NYU. That's it? Yeah, I came up short.

I went to fucking 15 burger places. Did you talk to him? No, I didn't. I wasn't sure if he remembered me. All right, well, maybe we shouldn't end on such a, you know. Well, Griffin, do you have any other things you want to do? We're not doing a book report. I have a burger report.

Okay, okay, go on, Ben. But I don't want to add too much time here. But it came up in the book that we are referencing, the book report, M. Night Shyamalan's book about education. Yeah. And so in the book, one of our fans referenced on Twitter that he actually went to the Spotted Pig. Right, you mentioned this to me. That was a haunt of his.

M. Night in the book said it was a regular haunt of filmmakers. Ben used to work at the Spotted Pig. Right. You mentioned this to me. That was a haunt of his. M. Night in the Books is a regular haunt of filmmakers. Ben used to work at the Spotted Pig, Bobby. So I actually never You never saw him. I never saw him. You may not have been looking for him, Ben. But the story doesn't end there because as a bartender

you have to help stock the bar and that includes grabbing fruit Okay. Now perhaps let's say M. Night Shyamalan one night he came in. He had a burger You have to help stock the bar. And that includes grabbing fruit. Okay. Sure. Lemons. Now, perhaps, let's say M. Night Shyamalan one night, he came in, he had a burger, and he was like, I'm going to have a Manhattan. Okay.

He ordered it with the orange twist. I handled those oranges. Boom. We're telling some stories with a land with a real clock. So, Ben, your story is, if he were to have ordered a drink maybe his lips touch an orange that you had once touched. That's right. Well, that's not a burger report.

That's a fruit fact. That's a fruit fact, but it was a twist. Well, it's not a burger report, but I can tell a really quick story that is not my story about an orange twist on Manhattan. So this is now the orange twist. I will try to do this is now, this is The orange twist. I will try to do this in 30 seconds.

I'm not good at this. This is a new segment. It's called The Orange Twist File. This is The Orange Twist. A friend of mine was in LA for whatever reason. The City of Angels. She was waiting. She was at Sunset Towers. That's where she was staying. She was at the bar. She was waiting for her wife.

Yeah. And was at the bar. Was waiting for her wife and was at the bar was just getting a Manhattan Alone ordered a it was very crowded because there was an event going on it was a wedding outside

that was of a person who was friends with a famous person so there were famous people at the wedding but they were not like super famous people they were Mark McGrath

level famous people so Mark McGrath was one of the guests so she orders the very level as it should be my friend he said I am the median my friend befriends Mark McGrath was one of the guests. The very level of Mark McGrath. He said, I am the median.

My friend befriends Mark McGrath's wife, not knowing it is Mark McGrath's wife. So they're talking at the bar. She orders, the wife is very drunk. She orders a rye Manhattan. Oh. And she hears a man say, what's that? That man was Mark McGrath. Oh my God, Bobby.

And so. Sorry. This is like Cloud Atlas. All the stories are shaking each otherGrath. Oh my God, Bobby. And so, this is like Cloud Atlas. All the stories are shaking each other's hands. They have a little time. They like talk. She befriends Mark McGrath. He's very nice. So is his wife. Good to know.

Her Rye Manhattan comes. It's not a twist of an orange. It is a slice of an orange, you know, garnishing. Oh, garnish, garnish, garnish. And Mark McGrath says, I feel bad because this isn't my story, but I'm taking it. Mark McGrath says, is that toast?

In a million years, I couldn't have predicted that. And she said, no, it's an orange slice. And did he say, oh, cool. I don't know. I don't know what he was talking about. The story ends there. That's where the letters, if we were reading the letters, they were just cut off. Is that toast?

Is that toast? That's great. That's a great story. If you have any orange twists. If you have any orange twist stories, you just tweeted us, blank check. If you're listening to this in the future, hey, what's up? This is how we were living in 2016. Thank you, Ben.

If you have a case you want to report to the Orange Twist file, submit your case. Griffin, I'm desperate to know. Well, we can save the book report for the Jupiter Ascending episode. Yeah, we'll do that. But what was the other thing you wanted to do?

I wanted to do a speed round performance review where we just picked which performance from each actor was our favorite. Well, that's pretty easy, actually. But I think there's

a more important segment if we're only going to do one. Oh. For the first time ever, a guest has perhaps come in preloaded with their own merchandise spotlight. Oh, I forgot. We forgot about that. There is a piece of merchandise in this film that I didn't even know existed, but Bobby has coveted. Well, Bobby was just telling me about this off mic.

The spotlight. Do you want to talk about it? I won't spend the money on it. Merchandise spotlight. While I was re-watching it this morning, I noticed that there was, you know, they had, when Holly Berry goes to the record store to buy the Cloud Atlas

sex set, it's like packaged very nicely and I was like, oh, I wonder if- It's pretty. It's got like weird

sort of colors and it's like a mountain-y kind of, it's very cool. And so, I don't know why, it made me think like, oh,

I wonder if they actually made this, if they actually pressed it and this is a playable version of the sex set and it sounded like something they would do. I mean, the Speed Racer car was a drivable car. They like to make things. actually made this, if they actually pressed it and this is a playable version of the sextet. They like to make things. It sounded like something they would do.

I mean, the Speed Racer car was a drivable car. They like to make things. So I started to just do some very preliminary Googling about it and trying to see if it was real.

Turns out they did use it. They did press it. They pressed a limited number of copies. They sold them originally for like, I think it was only on sale in the UK

and they sold it for like 30 euros where I found people talking about it in 2012. Ben sounds like he's dying, by the way. There aren't many left. There aren't many left. And if you want to buy it now, you can find it on eBay.

You can find it new, and it's about $300. Ooh. I think Griffin just smiled with interest. There is one on eBay right now. The auction ends probably around 2 p.m. Eastern tomorrow. I'm going to keep my eye on it. It was currently at about $50 with eight bids with 36 hours

to go. That's going to go high, Chris. That's going to go so high. That's going to go high. I have a green Hugo weaving over my shoulder right now going, you better buy it now. Buy it now option. Make an offer. It's new. When's it going to be available again? What's the reserve? It's factory sealed but it has a crease on the upper right corner. You can handle that. You're a superhero. What else are you going to be available again? What's the reserve? It's factory sealed, but it has a crease on the upper right corner.

You can handle that. You're a superhero. What else are you going to spend money on? Is it the whole score or is it literally the sex set? It's four tracks. It's the sex set and then a couple other things. Cool. They filled the vinyl.

Great merchandise spotlight. You don't want to do a rapid performance review? Yeah, let's do it. Go through each actor. You pick your favorite performance. Favorite Sturgis. I weirdly think it's do it. It's really... Go through each actor, you pick your favorite performance. Favorite Sturgis. I weirdly think it's Neo Soul. Me too.

Yeah. I think it might be that. I think so. As problematic as his look is. His look is, but he's quite dynamic. Yeah, he's really... It's a movie star performance. Winshaw is obviously the composer.

Yeah, he kills it. That's really his only big role. Yeah. And Barry is probably Louisa Ray, right? I think she's very nice in the future. She's in the future. I think Louisa Ray is my favorite. I think Louisa Ray might be my favorite Halle Berry performance ever.

I was going to say that she's really great. I think she's really great. It is weird. It's true. The balcony is really great. Her elevator scene is great. And I was going to say, that's my favorite Tom Hanks performance in the film, too. I think him as Isaac the scientist.

Very brief performance. It's brief, but it's kind of quintessential Hanks because it's the type of decency that's hard to play. And those two have a really, really nice chemistry there. In both of those. He brought a lot of heart and soul to the London Gangster. I just really, really appreciate what he did with that. That's a fair point. No, I actually love Hanks throughout the movie. I love Hanks just throwing

him. I love watching him. And Jim Broadbent, there's only one option, right? The blind musician. Oh! What's the option? What's the option, Bobby? Whatever. Whatever the guy's name is. Cavendish?

Cavendish. Ruddy Cavendish. Yeah. Keith David has to be in the Louie Ray storyline as her protector, defender. Hugo Weaving, for me, is the nurse.

Oh, no. I'm going to go the green. I'm going green. You're going green. Green Goblin. He would have been a good Green Goblin. Yeah, he'd be a great Green Goblin.

Good in Spider-Man. No, I feel like there's a major actor. Well, Duna Bay is wonderful. I think she should have been Oscar nominated. I agree. As soon as me. She's terrific. Yeah.

I do feel, wait, isn't there one more? What's her name? Hugh Grant. Oh, yes. I'm sorry. Yes, Hugh Grant. Now, I think Hugh Grant is an underrated actor who obviously is clearly a nightmare to work with and a really lazy actor who does a lot of bad movies

and only works with guys who butter him up like Mark Waters or whatever but when you put him to the test he's good and he's good in this

is his name Mark Waters that guy Mark Waters is the guy who made like two weeks notice in music and lyrics in the last ten years 75% of his films

have been written directed by the same guy who did fucking two weeks notice did you hear about the Morgans, The Rewrite, which is the one that didn't even come out theatrically here. There was another one, Music and Lyrics. He does Wonder Man comedy every three years with the same director.

And he'll do Richard Curtis, but he hasn't done that since Love Actually. Yeah, he rarely... But this film, you get a full meal. He's giving you five different dishes. So what's your favorite crime, Bobby? I liked him as the cannibal because it was surprising for me. He made a good cannibal, but I think my favorite was him as the nuclear guy on the Louisa Way. He made a very deliciously sleazy CEO guy.

He was good. He knew his sort of performance. He was good. I was going to make a joke earlier. I forgot it, but in that segment, he's playing himself. Yeah, right. He's essentially just playing the evil version of like with a fatter tie

my favorite one is him as fucking Broadbent's brother yeah he's doing something fuck yeah so this has been fun Bobby we should all listen to Who Weekly if you're not listening to Who Weekly then who are you

I don't know is there anything else we have to plug boo boo boo boo boo I'm trying to think because this is going to come out so far in advance that's true well you're making the tick I'm making the tick at the time you're listening to this I'm probably just finishing up

don't even say that I'm not even going to make a silly joke about it. You're going to be great. I'm still waiting for the day where they're like... This is the last time we're probably going to record it until you'd make the tick. So next time we were on mic you'll probably have made the tick. This is a Saturday right now and I start filming on Tuesday

and for two weeks I'm not going to do anything else other than make that tick. Make that tick. I'm doing a show at Union Hall, the Griffin Joe Holiday Spectacular on the 31st. Is it Memorial Day? than make that tick. Make that tick. I'm doing a show at Union Hall. My my the Griffin Joe holiday spectacular on the 30th

is it Memorial Day at 730. That's the plan. We're going to memorialize Memorial Day after it's happened. Yeah. It's moving.

It's moving. Yes. I believe it's Tuesday the 31st May 31st at 730 at Union Hall. You and I are about to go see the shit out of Civil War.

Yeah, which at this point will be a month old when you listen to this, so who fucking gives a shit? Hey! Yeah, but we're going to see the shit out of it. We saw X-Men Apocalypse lately. Yesterday. The embargo doesn't lift until Monday. Yeah, but by the time this airs, it will be about to come out in theaters.

Yeah. I almost texted you last night just one more time saying the embargo doesn't lift until Monday. Can we share our opinions just because this could be a time capsule and it won't release? Yeah, it's a dog shit movie. I give it a gentleman's five. Bad. We can talk about it in more depth later. I feel like

even though the embargo has not yet lifted. I just like the idea of fucking with the embargo because no one's going to hear this until now. My quick take on it is the X-Men are in it. They have pretty faces and they punch people. A gentleman's five. It's really bad. It's an. Yeah. It's really bad. It's an insulting movie. It's watchable.

It's very long. It is very long and the end just stops. It becomes white noise. It stops making sense. Can you repeat what you told me when I asked you said you asked me. We were talking about people who didn't like X-Men Apocalypse. Oh yeah. Repeat the joke. I'll repeat the joke. Okay. I liked X-Men Apocalypse. I thought it was fine. It's not a great movie. You know who really. I liked X-Men Apocalypse. I thought it was fine.

It's not a great movie. You know who really didn't like X-Men Apocalypse? Who, Griffin? Jennifer Lawrence. She has to deliver this big emotional monologue near the end, and she delivers it like there's a gun being pointed at her. She's like, the Uber's outside right now. You're promising me that the second I get this on film.

As always, we got to wrap this up. Yes. Griffin. Cloud Atlas. Yeah. As always. I just realized we didn't cover like half of the plot. get this on film as always we gotta wrap this up yes griffin cloud atlas yeah as always i just realized we didn't cover like half of the plot like that we we didn't conclude any of the plot lines what do you mean we didn't get to the part where she finds out that they're like stripping the other clones and feeding the clones oh that's very matrixy yeah well there's three movies where people are being used as right and j for other people. Yeah.

No, we covered most of the plot lines. You know, they shoot the fucking signal into space, and Tom Hanks gets married to Halle Berry. Good movie. Watch it. Be kind to other people. Bobby, you're the best. Thank you for being here. You guys are the best.

Ben, please don't die. You guys are the best. Ben, oh my God. I just love Ben making Darth Vader noises in the background of this entire episode. Ben is, this is it This might be Ben's last episode I'll be back, but we gotta stop

Stronger than ever, we gotta stop Next month we're gonna read a Next episode we're gonna read a book report that someone sent in We got a book report to the M. Night Shyamalan book so look forward to that, maybe I'll see a FAMO eating a burger commissary or whatever and as always,

buy the Cloud Atlas vinyl on eBay. Do it. Griffin. Why can't I find this one fucking... Oh my god. Whose line is it? It's uh...

Oh, I see what you... That took a while. These bottles are all the rage. I see these bottles everywhere. I know, I know. It's, I, I jumped right into that trend. They're good, you know? I'll leave it cold water.

I leave it in a hot car and it's still cold. Another, another big, uh, in addition to Chick-fil-A drive-thru, which Texans love, they love their Yeti tumblers. Have you heard of the Yeti tumbler? I have not. What is that? It's a brand of cooler, but also thermal technology that keeps drinks very cold for a really long time. And so their coolers are really expensive, and they're really bulky.

You'd be dropping a few hundred dollars for a cooler. You'd be dropping. Like four or five hundred dollars for a cooler. That's a lot of money for a cooler. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. But yes. Okay, fair enough. But Texas is a hot place.

But the more affordable entry into the brand is the, not that it's a tumbler. So you've got like your, it's big and then it fits in the glove compartment. In a cup holder? In your cup holder. big, and then it fits in the glove compartment. In a cup holder? Wait, a vlog you're talking about? No. It's a, it's a. Sorry. No, no.

It's probably 32 ounces. Okay, all right. And then it gets, you know, thin at the bottom. Right, right. It's like a soda cup. They keep, it's a metallic lid and everything else is there like special technology. That's probably about $75 for your tumbler. You look in a car, in a parking lot, a lot of them will just have them.

They've got the lower end model that's maybe $45, $50. This is only like $35. And so a friend of mine, her father has one, and he was visiting her. He was like, I got my Yeti Tumblr. I think his kids gave it to him for Christmas. He was like, I left it in the car. And I got back in the car after work. I'm looking at him right now.

And he was like, there was still ice in my water. And I was like, is that, like, what is that? You're supposed to be like, no! Okay, I couldn't find the one I was looking for. I found a different one. All right, we got to go. Yeah, we're starting right now. Ben, please put all that Yeti Tumblr talk at the end of the episode.

Oh, sure, no problem. Okay, cool. Ready? Yeah. Ben please put all that Yeti Tumblr talk at the end of the episode sure no problem ready? yeah